“Looking for the Perfect Beat”: A Tribute to J Dilla @ The Bronx Museum – 2.5.10

For the past four years, during the first week/weekend of February, hip hop heads have been coming together to celebrate the life and music of J Dilla (born James Yancey), who passed way on February 10, 2006 of TTP (a blood disorder) and Lupus. He was only 32, and died 3 days after his birthday the release of his album, Donuts.

Although Dilla was from Detroit, New York ‘s hip hop community has consistently put together events honoring him that bring together fans from far and wide. This year, I decided to cover all the major J Dilla tribute events in the NYC area, the first of which was “Looking for the Perfect Beat” at The Bronx Museum of the Arts.

The event was hosted by Black45 of Meet the Producers (MTP) Jersey and Ariel Fernandez Diaz (Asho). It featured performances by Daniel Joseph, Yahzeed, John Robinson and El Da Sensei as well as a producer showcase by Illmind and DJ Mentplus. Several hundred people came out to support this event, including Ralph McDaniels (Video Music Box). I was especially pleased that many friends from Brooklyn, New Jersey and beyond made the trip uptown to the Bronx.